Lord Byron by Rupert Everett

FULYA ÇİMEN

British actor Rupert Everett was in Istanbul recently filming a documentary about Lord Byron, a dashing bisexual English poet known for his admiration of Greece.

Everett, who will present the documentary, was here two weeks ago shooting some scenes of the film for British television channel the BBC. He said this was not his first time in Turkey and that he has been to Istanbul several times before, but being here on a working visit seems to have given him some new perspective.

Documentary on Lord Byron

Byron traveled nearly all around the world, and so has Everett during the production of the film. "We have traveled everywhere Byron had been. We try to take him with us everywhere we go," said Everett.

The documentary will be made up of two hour-long episodes. The shoot started about three weeks ago, Everett said, but they have been working on the production for over three months. Everett and his crew have been in Tirana and Istanbul so far. "The next destinations are Greece, Italy, Portugal, Switzerland and finally England," he said. "We never stay anywhere more than two days. It is very tiresome. You never get to unpack your case; you never have any clean cloths," Everett said talking about the difficulties shooting a film on the road.

Yet he isn't complaining, "Traveling for work is much more fun than traveling as a tourist. When you work you meet interesting people. For example we were able to meet the director of Topkapı Palace. I bet he has very interesting stories," he said.

‘He is so extreme'

Lord Byron was born in 1788 in England and died in 1824 in Greece. He was a supporter of Greece during the Greek war of independence from the Ottoman Empire. He was also known as a bisexual, an extraordinary person and a fabulous poet. The documentary reflects Byron's personal, literary and poetic sides, according to Everett.

Byron is said to be a person who was full of contradiction. "He is so extreme. He goes to one extreme to the other as a character. He starts as a romantic and ends up as a political revolutionary," said Everett, talking about what attracted him to portraying the story of Byron's life.

The filming should end by December and is expected to reach viewers around April.

‘Turkish people have an elephant-like memory'

What about Byron's feelings about Turks? "I bet Turkish people don't like him because he took the side of Greek people in history. Turkish people have an elephant-like memory. No one forgets anything. So you may still have bad feelings.

"But actually, he loved Turkish people. He has written lots of things about them. Yes, he preferred Greek people to Turkish people. This is one of the things that is extreme and conflicting about him."

He said he would be very happy if Turkish people reevaluated Byron and tried not to see him as an enemy. "You have a really long memory. He actually liked Turkish people and really enjoyed his time in Istanbul. Istanbul has a special place for him I think."

Lord Byron swam across the Dardanelles despite being crippled, so Everett went to Çanakkale before his visit to Istanbul. Everett admits swimming across the Dardanelles was the most difficult thing he has done so far during filming.

While there, Everett said he fell in love with Kilitbayır. "I'd love to get a summer house in Kilitbayır. Tons of English people have houses there. It was gorgeous."